Tag: olive oil
-
Court Orders Injunctive Relief for Olive Oil Association in False Ad Suit
A federal court in New York has agreed to impose some of the preliminary injunctive relief requested by the North American Olive Oil Association in litigation alleging that Kangadis Food Inc., doing business as The Gourmet Factory, falsely labeled its product as “100% Pure Olive Oil” when it actually contained Pomace or was 100 percent…
-
Olive Oil Trade Group Challenges Capatriti® Brand as Inauthentic
The North American Olive Oil Association has brought an unfair competition and false advertising action against The Gourmet Factory claiming that it sells its Capatriti® brand as “100% Pure Olive Oil” when it is actually made from “leftover olive skins and pits using a combination of chemical solvents and high temperatures.” N. Am. Olive Oil…
-
Australian Agency Fines Olive Oil Maker Over “Extra Virgin” Claims
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has fined a Kensington, South Australia, olive oil manufacturer a total of A$13,200 for marketing its products as “extra virgin” even though they purportedly did not meet international grade standards. According to a May 18, 2012, ACCC press release, The Big Olive Company Pty Ltd over a four-month…
-
USDA Extends Quality Monitoring Program to Olive Oil
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) recently announced the expansion of its Quality Monitoring Program to include extra virgin and organic extra virgin olive oil. According to an April 3, 2012, post on the USDA blog, the program hopes to address questions raised in the last few years about olive oil quality and provide consumers…
-
New Book on Olive Oil Industry Presses for Change
According to a December 7, 2011, New York Times book review, a new tome by freelance writer Tom Mueller has claimed that 50 percent of the olive oil sold in America “is, to some degree, fraudulent.” Based on an August 13, 2007, New Yorker article, Extra Virginity: The Sublime and Scandalous World of Olive Oil apparently…
-
Florida EVOO Lawsuits Dismissed for Inadequate Pleading
Two putative class actions alleging that companies making and selling extra virgin olive oil (EVOO) sell their products at a premium despite their failure to meet certain EVOO standards have been dismissed by a federal court in Florida because the plaintiffs did not adequately plead their claims under Bell Atlantic Corp. v. Twombly, 550 U.S. 544…
-
Second Olive Oil Study Presses for Stricter Standards
The University of California, Davis, Olive Center and Australian Oils Research Laboratory have issued an April 2011 report on olive oils sold in California, concluding that 73 percent of sampled oils allegedly fell short of International Olive Council (IOC) standards for extra-virgin oil. Building on a July 2010 report, the latest results were based on…
-
USDA Sets Standards for Olive Oil
According to an agricultural and food law blog, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has published the U.S. Standards for Grades of Olive Oil and Olive-Pomace Oil, effective October 25, 2010. They supersede standards that were in effect since 1948. According to the agency, the standards “are designed to facilitate orderly marketing by providing a convenient…